Historic Map

Katoomba Bushwalks

From the "Blue Mountains Railway Tourist Guide"
Publication date unknown, but believed to be around 1900.

Map printed by Department of Lands, 1894.

Please be patient whilst the map downloads -- it is a 74Kb GIF file.

Noteable Items

Coal mine wire tramway. The section down through the cliffs remains to this day as the Katoomba Scenic Railway, so you can take a ride on it. It is the steepest incline railway in the world, reaching a hair-raising 52 degrees! The tramway was operated by wire ropes, as the Scenic Railway still is.

"Iron house (school)", "old house" and "old sawmill" in the valley below the coal mine. Can anyone supply information about these?

Tramway leading into coal mine. This dual-track cable-operated line continued out the other side, crossed a trestle bridge, tunnelled under Narrow Neck via the Daylight Tunnel, and continued down to kerosene shale mines in the Megalong Valley. A horse-drawn branch line ran out to more mines at the Ruined Castle.
See our Katoomba Cable Railways page to find out more.

It is interesting to see photos, from this era, of bushwalking parties in the Blue Mountains. Their clothing, particularly the ladies, was not very appropriate for the task!

"Blue Mountains Railway Tourist Guide" is held in the local history archives of the Blue Mountains City Library at Springwood.
Their assistance is gratefully acknowledged.